In response to the rise in gang-related crime, the City of Albany, NY instituted the Capital Region Gang Prevention Center and the Gang Prevention Program in 1999. The mission of the program is to develop a comprehensive mechanism to reduce gang-related crime and deter youth from joining gangs. To meet this goal, the center has implemented prevention, intervention, and suppression program partnerships with law enforcement, criminal justice agencies, schools, youth service providers and the public. The office coordinates county and citywide antigang efforts, including gathering and sharing information on gang activity, gang prevention programming, and education and gang awareness workshops. The programs involve collaborations that include:
-The Gang Prevention Program (GPP) assisted in the creation of a comprehensive Gang Database which identifies area gangs and provides information on gang members and affiliations.
- The Gang Prevention Program conducts monthly information sharing meetings with area law enforcement agencies including police, corrections, probation and parole officer's to discuss gang related trends and issues that impact the community. Partnering with probation and area law enforcement improves oversight of gang members and allows the courts to involved the Gang Prevention Program to provide more assistance to first-time offenders and individuals invovled in gang activity.
- The Gang Prevention Program provides area law enforcement agencies, schools and youth facilities with Gang Awareness Programming (GAP) which trains officers, school and youth facility personnel, to recognize gang activity and provide a model for zero-tolerance of gang related behaviors. The GPP has trained over 8,000 law enforcement officer's, including the NYS Police, School Resource Officer's, New York's Zone 5 Police Academy and many other agencies. The GPP also provides programming such as interventions, mentoring and positive diversions for the youth within schools and youth facilities, and has presented gang prevention assemblies for over 10,000 youth.
- The Gang Prevention Program has created successful community-based and Departmental partnerships with such agencies as the YMCA, SUNY Albany Department of Health, the Albany County Crime Victims Agency, the College of St. Rose, the Albany County Probation Department, the Albany County Drug Court and many others, to prevent and reduce gang activity.